Free Essay. Problems That Were Caused by Colorado Taxpayer Bill of Rights (TABOR)

The Colorado Taxpayer Bill of Right (TABOR) refers to a concept that was advocated by the free market libertarian and the conservative groups. The idea behind the formation of TABOR was the desire to limit the growth of government. It was not a contract of rights but the provision that required the overall increase in tax revenues to be connected to inflation as well as the population increase except when larger increases are agreed through a referendum. One of the main problems caused by the Colorado Taxpayer Bill of Rights (TABOR) was that the spending for corrections grew substantially faster compared to the inflation-plus-population formula of TABOR (Kulik & Ermasova, 2018). The above scenario was due to strict sentencing laws and criminal codes. As a result, in the growth of spending in corrections, there was a reduction in the budgets in other areas to keep the overall spending within the strict TABOR limits (Mitchell, 2010). Another problem caused by the above Amendment was that there was no provision of enough money to solve the deficiencies in financing processes (Mitchell, 2010). The evidence of the above scenario is that K-12 funding increased temporarily immediately after amendment 23 and again fell back (Kulik & Ermasova, 2018). The state of Colorado spend hundreds of dollars on every pupil more than the national average.

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Impacts of Florida's Amendment 3

Florida's amendment 3 would impact schools and the healthcare system in different ways; first, it will result in deep cutbacks in funds for Florida's universities and schools (Mitchell, 2010). Almost half of the funds subjected to amendment 3 cap often goes to the support of universities and schools. Therefore, Amendment 3 would drastically limit the available revenues that are often used to maintain the education system (Mitchell, 2010). With Amendment 3, the health services for the elderly and children would face cuts. Florida's Amendment 3 would limit financial resources for the medical care for over 250,000 children across the state of Florida, and also, place at risk several health services are given to the elderly people including dementia care (Kulik & Ermasova, 2018). With Amendment 3, some of the Medicaid coverage will be at risk; also, the fund that the state put aside to pay hospitals for the uncompensated medical care would fall under the cap.

Impacts of Florida's Amendment 3 on Capital Financing

With the financial cuts, Florida's Amendment 3 would severely reduce capital financing. Amendment 3 stipulates the reduction in the financial resources for various sectors, from the financial to education and the general public funding (Kulik & Ermasova, 2018). With less capital funding, businesses will not be able to access credit or loans to fund their bonuses. It would also become very difficult to access grants as well as other financial support from the government for businesses. Government cuts and less funding would, therefore, impact different sectors of Florida's economy.

Going by the impacts that Florida's Amendment 3 would create, it is necessary for Florida to reject TABOR (officially Amendment Three); this would enhance the provision of adequate resources in the education and health sectors. In most cases, underfunding the health sector may lead to the deterioration of the effective healthcare system, a situation that may increase the rate of mortality. Additionally, underfunding the education sector may lead to school dropouts for learners from low-income families, a condition that may increase the illiteracy levels.

References

Kulik, J. M., & Ermasova, N. (2018). Tax Expenditure Limitations (TELs) and State Expenditure Structure in the USA. Public Organization Review, 18(1), 53-69. Retrieved from: https://link.springer.com/article/10.1007/s11115-016-0361-3

Mitchell, M. D., (2010). TEL It Like It Is: Do State Tax and Expenditure Limits Limit Spending?. George Mason University-Mercatus Center Working Paper (10-71). Retrieved from: http://mercatus.org/sites/default/files/publication/TEL%20It%20Like%20It%20Is.Mitchell.12.6.10.pdf.